Vegan Aspirant wrote: So you want to keep your current bodyfat % and add 20-25 lbs of lean mass?

Yea that would be ideal but it's gonna be hard. I might have to bulk up past 160 then lean out to get to the ideal body fat. We'll see though! Putting on weight is insanely hard because of my metabolism/being vegan. I can lose 10lbs in like 3 weeks, but only gain 1lb in like 2-3 weeks.

I find that guys who have a hard time putting on weight usually experience this "problem" (I'd happily trade places with you) due to a relatively high metabolism AND little food intake. Like 1500-2000 kcal a day and these are *grown* men. I get what you're saying though - it can be hard on a vegan diet, but that's typically if you're eating clean and/or doing a raw diet as well. Personally I find it hard *not* to exceed my 3500-4000 kcal a day, even post veganism lol. But then again I eat a lot of vegan sweets and maybe 150-200 grams of nuts a day, aside from a lot of rich in calorie legumes like red kidney beans and chick peas. Oh yeah and lots of bread. Perhaps that could work for you too?

Vegan Aspirant wrote: I find that guys who have a hard time putting on weight usually experience this "problem" (I'd happily trade places with you) due to a relatively high metabolism AND little food intake. Like 1500-2000 kcal a day and these are *grown* men. I get what you're saying though - it can be hard on a vegan diet, but that's typically if you're eating clean and/or doing a raw diet as well. Personally I find it hard *not* to exceed my 3500-4000 kcal a day, even post veganism lol. But then again I eat a lot of vegan sweets and maybe 150-200 grams of nuts a day, aside from a lot of rich in calorie legumes like red kidney beans and chick peas. Oh yeah and lots of bread. Perhaps that could work for you too?

Hahaha for sure, yea pretty much everyone I talk to goes, "wait what? you want to gain weight?"I eat pretty clean; mostly veggies, legumes, grains, fruits, nuts, seeds and a LOT of non-soy vegan protein (hemp/pea/rice blend). Usually 160-180g of protein and 2500-3000 calories daily. I was doing lots of bread but I think i'm allergic to gluten Maybe i should aim for more calories..?

Vegan Aspirant wrote: I find that guys who have a hard time putting on weight usually experience this "problem" (I'd happily trade places with you) due to a relatively high metabolism AND little food intake. Like 1500-2000 kcal a day and these are *grown* men. I get what you're saying though - it can be hard on a vegan diet, but that's typically if you're eating clean and/or doing a raw diet as well. Personally I find it hard *not* to exceed my 3500-4000 kcal a day, even post veganism lol. But then again I eat a lot of vegan sweets and maybe 150-200 grams of nuts a day, aside from a lot of rich in calorie legumes like red kidney beans and chick peas. Oh yeah and lots of bread. Perhaps that could work for you too?

Hahaha for sure, yea pretty much everyone I talk to goes, "wait what? you want to gain weight?"I eat pretty clean; mostly veggies, legumes, grains, fruits, nuts, seeds and a LOT of non-soy vegan protein (hemp/pea/rice blend). Usually 160-180g of protein and 2500-3000 calories daily. I was doing lots of bread but I think i'm allergic to gluten Maybe i should aim for more calories..?

Lol 2500 kcal is a cut season for me. Well depends on your activity level, I mean you don't want to lose too much leanness (is that a word?) either. Try logging your daily intake for about a month and try to calculate your daily maintenance intake after. Assuming it is e.g. 2700, add 500 kcal to it and bounce it up to 3200 kcal/day. Or if you want to do a slow more qualitative bulk, add 300 kcal to your daily intake instead.

Vegan Aspirant wrote:Lol 2500 kcal is a cut season for me. Well depends on your activity level, I mean you don't want to lose too much leanness (is that a word?) either. Try logging your daily intake for about a month and try to calculate your daily maintenance intake after. Assuming it is e.g. 2700, add 500 kcal to it and bounce it up to 3200 kcal/day. Or if you want to do a slow more qualitative bulk, add 300 kcal to your daily intake instead.

That's a good idea, I've logged it for a couple weeks or so before and it was 2800, i think i'll add 400 for a while and see what happens. I'm going to be full all day lol.

ViiKiing wrote:Yea that would be ideal but it's gonna be hard. I might have to bulk up past 160 then lean out to get to the ideal body fat. We'll see though! Putting on weight is insanely hard because of my metabolism/being vegan. I can lose 10lbs in like 3 weeks, but only gain 1lb in like 2-3 weeks.

In my opinion it's easier just to stuff your face and then deal with body fat later. But then I am a rare case and eating 4,000-5,000kcal a day of wholesome clean Vegan food barely adds any weight to me; let alone body fat.

You would be surprised at your caloric requirements weightlifting and under eating can actually cause you to become flabbier because you tank your metabolism. I know I do. It'll also slow or halt your gains.

Cellar Yeti wrote:In my opinion it's easier just to stuff your face and then deal with body fat later. But then I am a rare case and eating 4,000-5,000kcal a day of wholesome clean Vegan food barely adds any weight to me; let alone body fat.

You would be surprised at your caloric requirements weightlifting and under eating can actually cause you to become flabbier because you tank your metabolism. I know I do. It'll also slow or halt your gains.

Damn 4,000-5,000kcal!! I don't think I can eat that much without throwing up. I'm already stuffed as is with 2800-3000. How much do you weigh? Maybe I should trust my metabolism more but I definitely don't want to put unnecessary food in my system and just get gain fat.

Cellar Yeti wrote:In my opinion it's easier just to stuff your face and then deal with body fat later. But then I am a rare case and eating 4,000-5,000kcal a day of wholesome clean Vegan food barely adds any weight to me; let alone body fat.

You would be surprised at your caloric requirements weightlifting and under eating can actually cause you to become flabbier because you tank your metabolism. I know I do. It'll also slow or halt your gains.

Damn 4,000-5,000kcal!! I don't think I can eat that much without throwing up. I'm already stuffed as is with 2800-3000. How much do you weigh? Maybe I should trust my metabolism more but I definitely don't want to put unnecessary food in my system and just get gain fat.

I'm 5'6 155lbs. There was a time when eating just 2,500 and then 3,000kcal was very difficult for me. It's very unpleasant but after a while your stomach stretches and you can accommodate more food. I have a very fast metabolism and I am reaching the upper limits of my genetic potential.

It's important to listen to your body and develop instinctive eating habits and pay attention to your bodies signals. People focus on calories way too much in my opinion. You body knows best and if you allow it to it'll guide you to a proper eating regime.

Go into the gym and give it the beans; go all out and hold nothing back. Eat what you're normally eating and if your gains stop or slow increase the food intake; if you have trouble back off and try again.

Healthy food fuels us and to a certain extent you need to push the limits a bit. It's all about listening to the ques your body gives you; it knows best. I didn't go out and start eating massive amounts, but my gains slowed so I started forcing more food and my body accommodated and accepted this. To a certain extent you will need to push your comfort zone but your body will do the rest.

Just remember if you're really throttling it in the gym you're creating an intense anabolic state and calories can more easily be assimilated. So really give it the all.